


Vulpine Dreams

by Moonfireflight



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Claws, F/M, Fantasy AU, Kitsune, Mask, fangs, placeholder tag for future smut, saeyoungweek 2019, saeyoungweek2019, sharp teeth, those are the reasons I started this but apparently there's a plot too, tropetastic fantasy shenanigans, vaguely graphic description of one animal killing another
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 11:51:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20173795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moonfireflight/pseuds/Moonfireflight
Summary: This is the original idea I had floating around in my head when I made a work safe and cute version of it into a piece for the MM Fairy Tale zine. I meant for this to be a short little smutty thing for Saeyoungweek 2019, but it's decided that it wants to have a legitimate plot.MC has accidentally fallen into the spirit realm and it is up to a mysterious masked fellow to help her. He seems friendly but claims that being around him will get her into more trouble than she bargained for. She's apt to believe him when she notices his sharp claws and fluffy white tails. Trapped in the spirit realm until the next full moon, MC must survive an encounter with a dark spirit and figure out if she can trust her strange companion.I consent to the OTW terms of service and explicitly deny rights to reprint, share, or redistribute this work on any platform not owned by OTW. #





	Vulpine Dreams

Tall scraggly trees, so old that their branches entwined with each other in a massive labyrinth above her head, filled MC’s vision in every direction. It was strange… moments ago, she had been picking herbs to refill her stock when she noted that the trees around her seemed to have aged in an instant. There was a feeling of ancient mystery to the place that prickled at her skin. 

She felt none of the fear that should accompany that realization, only a vague sense of disorientation. Her feet continued to carry her in the direction she was heading, though she had no goal in mind beyond “forward.”

As she walked on, she caught a flash of something swift and red out of the corner of her eye. Was it a fox?  _ Those weren’t dangerous, right? Probably just as scared of me as I am of it. _ Again, a glimpse of red somewhere beyond thick hedges of dark green. Curious, she walked to where she last saw that crimson flicker, noting wicked-looking thorns and dull orange berries. As she reached down to investigate one of the tiny fruits, a sudden voice made her jump. 

“I wouldn’t eat those if I were you.” 

“Ow!” she cried, holding her stinging hand to her chest. Stupid thorny shrub. 

She was too preoccupied with the pain to look up at the source of the voice until she heard a “tisk tisk” from the man and finally decided to glare up at him. “No good. Those plants have poisonous berries and thorns. I guess I’ll have to take you with me then so you don’t die here in these woods.” 

Nothing in her reality was making sense. The man before her wore a white stylized fox mask with a shock of wild red hair sticking out all around it. With no expression beyond a painted smile, she couldn’t tell if he was telling the truth or just messing with her. Though, the wound in her hand ached and pulsed tremendously, leaving her to worry that she might be in real danger. 

He reached out a hand to help her up, and she noticed that his fingers were tipped with wickedly sharp red talons! When she focused instead on the movement behind the man, she thought she saw the swish of at least one fluffy white tail. Rather than taking his hand, she glared up at him. “What are you? I’m not going with you!” 

The monstrous man above her had the nerve to laugh. “I don’t think you have much of a choice! Do you think I came out here looking for a strange woman to take to my den and care for?”

“How am I strange?! At least I’m human.” 

Suddenly the fox mask was inches from her face, and she could hear his breathing rasping behind the pointed snout. “Oh, I’m well aware of that. But you… didn’t anyone tell you to stay away from this part of the woods? This is no place for a soft thing like you. You could get eaten right up.” Her heart thundered in her chest. His last words sounded like a threat, but fear was only a part of what she felt as he loomed over her. 

The masked man stood up again, his posture softening. “In other words, you really should come with me. Won’t you reconsider?” 

She was still afraid to take his hand, imaging those claws piercing her flesh, drawing blood. Instead, she pushed herself up from the forest floor. It took a few tries since the muscles of her left arm felt like wet reeds. “Can’t you just bring me the antidote? How bad can it be?” The moment she was standing, she heard a great rush of noise in her head and her vision flooded with white, then black. 

Three rapidly swishing white tails with red bands near their tips were the next thing she saw, along with the sun-dappled sea of leaves receding from her.  _ What?  _ She was terribly dizzy and being jostled around like this wasn’t helping. “What are you…,” MC took a deep breath, willing herself not to be sick. “What are you doing?! Put me down this instant!” 

The person, presumably the masked man from earlier, said nothing. He was carrying her like a sack of grain, over his shoulder. When she protested, he held onto her legs even tighter. She was so exhausted that even shouting had taken what little energy she had left, so she gave in to whatever fate he had in store for her. It was impossible to tell how far they had traveled as she kept slipping in and out of awareness. The forest was just a bit darker every time she opened her eyes, until she could no longer even see his long tails flicking behind him. 

_ Through the scents of the forest, a constant backdrop to her life, she caught it- a sweet and metallic smell. Over log and under branch, she weaves through the woods without a thought other than finding the source of her next meal. Her ears perk up at a faint cry. A wounded rabbit! Her paws barely touch the leafy ground as she sprints almost silently toward her target. There! With no hesitation, she pounces upon the creature, ending its life as her teeth sink into fur and skin and flesh. The rabbit’s rapid heartbeat stills and she listens. Only a fool loses themselves in a meal. Her ears flick this way and that, confirming she has no competition for her meal. Belly full, needs sated, she readies herself to return to her den when she feels eyes upon her. How could someone sneak up on her! She’s better than that! Then she sees him - A white snout and red-tipped ears, yellow eyes shining in the dim light of the forest.  _

She awoke to the uncomfortable sensation of being boiling hot and cold all at once. Her body seemed to be burning up from the inside, but her skin was covered in a sheen of freezing sweat. A grumbling from her stomach informed her that she was hungry but also warned her against eating ever again, or so it seemed. 

Any orders she gave her body, such as sitting up to see where she was, were summarily ignored, so she did her best to look around without moving too much. In the dim light, she could barely make out a ceiling of natural stone several feet above her. Though moving her head made her nauseous, she was able to confirm two things. She was in a cave, and she was naked. 

Unable to move, only to feel, she wished she could retreat back to unconsciousness. Fear of being seen like this and with no way to defend herself ensured she would remain awake as long as possible.  _ Focus. Focus on breathing and moving.  _

After a time, she was able to get the fingers of her uninjured hand to move, followed by her wrist, her elbow, and, with some pain, her shoulder. Through this, she discovered her bedding was a pile of furs, soft and silky. The sound of movement somewhere else in the cavern spurred her into trying to get more of her body to cooperate. Everything seemed to work except for her left arm, which might as well have been dead weight. Sitting up made her nausea return, but she was able to turn to one side. Back against the wall with her arm across her chest, she felt much less vulnerable. 

Not a moment after she’d gotten settled, the cavern echoed with gentle footfalls. It was dark enough in the cave that she could only see the faint light reflecting off of his white mask, making him look like a specter. She tensed, heart beating as fast as a rabbit’s. The mask seemed to float towards her there in the darkness. Once he was only a few feet away, she could make out the rest of his form. He wore a white robe that nearly brushed the floor of the cavern, held in place by a red sash. 

“You’re awake. Good. I’m sure you had a miserable sleep, but the worst of it has passed.” MC cringed back when he held something out to her. “Look, I didn’t tend to you all night just to kill you today. It is nothing more than a damp cloth to help keep you cool. You’ll see one next to you that fell off in your sleep.” He shuffled closer and gestured for her to take it. 

If it would quell some of the fire within her, perhaps it was worth the risk. She took the cloth, careful to avoid touching his claws, and draped it on her forehead. “Why are you helping me?” The sound of her unused voice grated against her ears, but she had to know. 

The mask tilted to one side. “And leave you to the nastier things out there for the crime of accidentally touching an ironthorn bush? But look, if you want to get back home, we need to get you healthy, and soon.” She frowned at his words, so he continued. “You have no idea the danger you are in, do you? Damn.” 

“What are you talking about?” 

He stood up, retreating a few steps back into the dark of the cave, shuffling something around. “I don’t know how you managed to get here on accident, but this forest is not meant for mankind. Are you telling me you entered a portal to the spirit woods without knowing it even exists?” 

Spirit woods? That was just a tale mothers told their children to keep them from wandering too far from home. “That’s impossible.” 

“Well, it should have been,” he snorted. “That portal is only known to a select few that we’ve formed a pact with, and is only open for a short while every full moon. People don’t just stumble into it.” 

She didn’t appreciate his tone at all. “Well, I guess I did. Now what?” 

“Now you’re stuck here until the moon is full again.” 

“A whole month?!” Forgetting her state of undress, she sat up. Thankfully her stomach wasn’t churning as violently but it did leave her a little woozy. 

The mask returned, bobbing in time with the man’s laughter. “You humans. I suppose that must seem like a long time to you.” Even without seeing his eyes, she could feel his gaze bore into her. The tilt of his mask and his silent scrutiny were enough for her to scramble to cover her chest. He chuckled at her shyness. “You’ve been sleeping for most of the last 3 days like this as I tended to your body. The fever was so severe that you would have died had I left you… decent. It’s nothing I haven’t already seen.” 

Silently seething, she only waited for him to continue. “Now that you are awake, you need nourishment.” Her stomach rumbled again at the thought of food, this time without her body providing arguments against the idea. The strange man came forward and sat very close to her. With his legs crossed in front of him, she could see that he was barefoot and that his toes ended in red claws as well. In his hands, he held a wooden bowl and spoon. “Here. This won’t taste good, but hopefully the honey will make it palatable.” He held the spoon out towards her as if intent on feeding her. 

“I can do it myself, thank you.” 

The mask tilted again, this time accompanied by the swishing of his tails against the ground behind him. “Wouldn’t you need to use your good arm?” 

She looked down at the hand covering her chest, then to the bowl. Be indecent in front of him again or be fed like a child? If what he said was right, the former didn’t matter at this point. With a sigh, she reached for the bowl and spoon. “A wise choice,” he said, before standing up again and walking away. “Be mindful not to eat too quickly, or you’ll get sick. I’ll let you be so you can rest again afterward.” 

“What do you mean by me having to get better quickly if I have to wait a month before I can leave?” 

His footfalls stopped, and she could hear nothing but him breathing. All she could see of him were the tips of his twitching tails. “Of course you’d be in a hurry to leave.” There was a pause before he continued, punctuated by a heavy breath resonating through his mask. “The poison you are inflicted with is from the ironthorn bush. Iron tends to interfere with magic, and so long as the poison is in your veins, you cannot travel through the portal. It’s not as simple as you missing that window of opportunity either. If you stay here too long… No, that won’t end up being a problem. I will get you out of here next full moon. Eat. Rest. Do as I say and you’ll be fine.” With that, he started to walk away.

She had many questions about her situation. To start with, she needed to know more about  _ him _ . “If I’m to stay with you for a month, may I at least know your name?” 

Another pause. Another breath. “One thing you need to know about this place is that names are very powerful. Don’t even tell  _ me _ your name, whatever you do. As for me, you can call me Luciel.” 

“Then, thank you for taking care of me, Luciel.” 

He left in silence, allowing her no other questions. 

The food he’d left her with was surprisingly delicious. It was a simple bowl of grain meal sweetened with honey. She ate slowly as he had suggested, seeing the wisdom in his words, all the while mulling over what he meant about her staying here too long. 

Dinner finished, she laid back down and drifted off to sleep, catching the faintest whiff of cooking meat before unconsciousness embraced her. 

_ She stilled, observing the interloper. There were no stories of white foxes, no legends. How could this be? Neither moved, only watching each other and waiting. His stare was not aggressive, only watchful, but she still had no desire to turn her back on him. That was a good way to end up dead. Tired of this game, and eager to go home, she began skirting around the edge of the small clearing, generally heading in the direction she needed but keeping her keen eyes on him. As she moved, so did he, and they danced like this for some time, staying equidistant from each other. How annoying! Not only should he not exist, he doesn’t follow the Code! She barks at him once to show her displeasure. Not a threat, but enough to tell him off. He only laughs in return and starts striding directly towards her.  _

When MC awoke again, it took her a moment to shake off the golden-eyed stare of the fox from her dream. Its eyes were so piercing that it felt like the creature stared into her soul. Once back to reality, she found there was a little more light trickling into the cave. After testing her muscles, she found she could sit up without feeling ill. Moving her left arm was no longer impossible, but it still felt heavy and weak. She no longer felt like she was burning up, so she decided to ask the man about her clothes next time he showed up. 

If it weren’t for his claws and tails, she would have never believed his story about magic portals and the full moon. Those stories couldn’t be true! Though now that she seemed to be living in one, she wished she could recall how those tales usually ended. Other than badly for the poor child, that is. 

The familiar sound of his strange bare feet padding through the cavern drew her attention. “Ah, good morning! Since you are awake, I’ll make you another bowl of that nasty stuff. Hopefully, it wasn’t too bad.” 

“Good morning to you, as well. Actually, the food last night was really good.” 

His mask rose slightly against his face, giving her the impression that he’d wrinkled his nose, and she couldn’t help but smile at how silly it looked. “You humans are strange. But I’m glad you can tolerate it.”

She’d almost forgotten what she’d meant to ask him. “Erm, do you think I could have my clothing back? I’m feeling much better today.” 

He drew close again and knelt next to her. “Let me check,” he said, holding the back of his hand close to her. When she didn’t flinch, he rested his hand against her forehead. “Thank goodness. I think yes, the worst of the fever is over. If you start feeling too warm again, let me know. I’ll go get your dress and some water, too.” 

The food was filling and the water cool and sweet. Once dressed, she felt a bit more confident in her situation and decided to finally try standing and exploring her surroundings a bit more. With the light of day reaching some parts of this chamber, she could see a series of shelves above a little table. It reminded her of her own stores of herbs and such for making healing tinctures and ointments. 

Some few days passed with no incident and no further dreams. MC had started to stretch her legs, going as far as the mouth of the cave a few times. The view from it was beautiful, as the opening was situated high on a mountain overlooking the ancient forest. Other hills and mountains surrounded the woods in a rough circle. Luciel forbade her from going any further than that, citing dangerous creatures that might hurt or kidnap her. She had to laugh at the last part, as she was already basically Luciel’s captive.  _ Better the devil you know, _ she thought,  _ and he seems mostly harmless _ . 

Though she didn’t know exactly why he left for so long during the day, she noticed that Luciel tended to return just before sunset. On this night, MC decided to wait for him at the mouth of the cave. As the sun dipped behind the mountain, it’s long shadow stretched over the canopy of the forest below, turning the valley into a cauldron of inky darkness. She watched as the cliffs before her were slowly swallowed up by the night as well.  _ He should have been back by now, right?  _

As the last of the light drained from the sky, the world around her seemed to come alive. In the day, it was silent. No birds sang, nor animals called to each other. Now she could almost feel the night breathing around her as the nocturnal creatures began to stir. A sound akin to the song of crickets began to emanate from the valley below. Something in the distance roared long and low, the haunting one-note melody echoing through the valley. He skin prickled and an utterly primal sense of fear hit her suddenly, like she was being told in no uncertain terms that she didn’t belong there. 

MC glanced up at the sky, hoping its familiarity would soothe her. The moon was still fat but waning, marking the next full moon as many days off still. Another wave of fear hit her as she gazed at the sea of stars above, not spotting a single constellation that she knew. That she had not even a star to navigate by gave her goosebumps. The cacophony of the forest seemed to swell with birds adding their strange songs to the rhythm of the night. Suddenly, a wicked cackling call from one erupted very close to her, and a shape, somehow darker than the night, flew past, feathers brushing her neck. She couldn’t take it anymore and was on her feet in seconds, bolting back into the relative security of the cave. 

If she had doubted Luciel before, she needed no further proof that she had been whisked away to another world. Alone in the dark, with no certainty that the only person she knew here would even come back, her throat felt swollen and tight. She tried to picture the white fox mask, hoping beyond hope that Luciel would be back soon.  _ How stupid, to pin all your hopes on some monstrous man who won’t even show you his face!  _ What else did she have, though? Collapsing on her bed of furs, she clenched her eyes shut. She hated crying, hated how weak and wrung out it always left her. 

The silence of the cave was broken by the unnatural crowing laughter she’d heard before, only this time it sounded like it was coming from every direction at once. MC pressed herself into the blankets and covered her other ear with her good hand. The noise seemed to dig around in her skull, picking through her thoughts to find her every doubt and fear, pulling them out one by one to laugh at how pathetic she was. She wanted to vanish, to sink into the floor and just stop existing. Anything to stop this monster from tormenting her!

A voice broke through the shrill cackling, and someone grabbed her by the hand. “Quickly! Get up and come with me. Now!” _ It was Luciel! _ Disoriented and scared, she scrambled to her feet with his help. Luciel left her at the threshold of the cave, commanding, “Stay here. I’m sure you’re scared, but it’s safe so long as we have a fire going. Keep behind me, no matter what. Promise me!”

“I promise!” Her voice sounded so small against the monster’s call, but he nodded in reply. With his back to her, he knelt before the firepit. Though she trembled in fear, she kept her eyes on Luciel, letting his flicking tails and red hair be a beacon in the fearful world around her. As she watched, he pulled his white mask up and over his head, setting it down next to him. She couldn’t see how he did it, but within seconds he was surrounded in a warm halo of flickering light from the fire pit. 

“I’m such a fool. I should have lit this before I left. I’m sorry.” Without his mask, he sounded softer, more… human. In one smooth motion, he covered his face again and turned to her, the grin of the painted fox face a contrast to his earlier tone. “We’re safe now. Tomorrow I’ll teach you how to make a fire in case that happens again, okay?” 

Still shaken, she crept forward until she was sitting next to him. The shriek of the monster bird had died out, and in the comforting glow, the oppressive feeling of the night lifted. They sat together in silence for a while. MC lifted her eyes from the fire to the strange sky, peering at stars she had no names for. Though now that her earlier fear had fled, she realized how much brighter each pinpoint of light was, how close they seemed compared to the stars back home. 

Luciel was the first to break the silence. “I’m sorry again that you’re stuck here with me. I know you’d rather be home.” 

She watched the reflection of dancing flames flicker along his smiling mask. They added a sense of life to that dead thing and matched his wild red hair. “Luciel, you saved my life. You don’t need to apologize.” 

“But I can’t protect you like I should. I can’t be here all the time to keep you safe.” He turned away, and she could sense there was something more he’d considered saying, but had left unspoken. 

“It’s fine. I don’t want to be a burden to you while I’m here anyway. It’s not your fault I ended up in this place. I’ll learn how to make a fire and have it lit and waiting for you tomorrow night. If there’s anything else I can do to help, just tell me.” 

The fox mask gazed straight at her. This close she could see that the black voids that represented eyes had small slits in them for him to see through, but they weren’t enough for her to see anything of the man behind the mask. “Why…,” he faltered. “Why are you being so kind? You should resent every part of this! Tonight you almost…” His shoulders slumped and he turned away again. “I’m sorry.” 

She couldn’t take this. None of this situation was his fault and from the sound of it, he’d now saved her life twice. MC placed her hand on his arm, speaking softly. “Luciel. Hush. I don’t know how I got here, but it doesn’t matter, because I can’t change it. Imagine how things would have been if you  _ hadn’t _ found me.”

“And… you’re not scared of me?” he asked, tilting his head. He looked so much like a curious puppy that she couldn’t help but smile. 

“Well, I was at first. I’ve never met… someone like you. But you’ve been nothing but kind and you deserve the same in return.” 

“You’re a strange one, you know that?” 

“I’ve been called that and worse, yes.” 

As he began to laugh, MC felt something soft and furry tickle at her arm. “Is that one of your tails?” she managed through her giggles. 

“What?! Aaah!” Luciel backed away from her, clutching at one of the offending fluffy things to stop its wild swishing. 

His scrambling only made her laugh harder. “It’s fine! You just surprised me!” 

Shaking his head, he pushed himself off the ground to stand. “I, um. I better get started on your dinner,” he said before practically running into the cave, chased by her sounds of mirth. 

Still smiling, she followed him back into her temporary home. 


End file.
